Two days passed, making it Friday and the day before the wedding. Leonard and Penny were standing at the luggage claim area at the airport again, waiting for her parents to get off their plane.
"So what about your family?" Penny asked as they waited.
"What about them?" Leonard wondered.
"When are they coming in? Do we need to pick them up?"
"No. Mom and Samantha flew in together yesterday."
"And your dad and brother?"
"I still haven't told them. It's just not worth it," Leonard told her. "What about your sister?"
"She flew in with Mom and Dad. I bet you can't wait to see that crazy bat again," Penny said. She spotted her family coming off the escalator. "And there they are."
"Penny!" Katie Anne squealed as she rushed towards her sister and threw her arms around her, nearly knocking Penny to the floor.
"Whoa! Watch yourself, Katie. Pregnant with twins here," Penny said as she shrugged her off.
"I know! I'm so excited for you! If one of them is a girl, will you name her Katie?"
"I'll talk about it with Leonard," Penny said as her parents reached them with broad smiles.
"Look at you, Penny dear! You're already glowing!" Mary said happily.
"Thanks, Mom," Penny said.
"Good to see you again, Leonard," Wyatt said as he shook Leonard's hand.
"Nice to see you, too, Wyatt," Leonard replied.
"You know what's coming next, don't you?"
"No, I-I don't think I do," Leonard said uncertainly.
"I'd like to have another talk with you," Wyatt told him. "Penny Rose, I got another rental car. If you wouldn't mind, I'd like you to pick it up and take your mother and your sister out to lunch."
"Yeah, I can do that," Penny said, feeling more comfortable with leaving Leonard with her dad than she did the first time.
"Good. We'll all talk later. Come on, Leonard," Wyatt said as he headed for the parking garage. Leonard said a quick goodbye to Penny before he rushed to catch up with him.
"Would you like the keys, Wyatt?" he asked as they approached his car.
"Nope. This time, you get to drive," Wyatt said as he headed for the passenger's seat. Leonard couldn't help but smile as he got into the driver's side, knowing that this was a great showing of trust from his father-in-law.
"Where would you like to go this time?" Leonard asked once they were in the car.
"I'm handing you the reins, Leonard. Take me wherever you want to go," Wyatt told him.
"Oh. Wow. Okay," Leonard said as he began to think of where to take him. Once he decided on a nearby restaurant, he pulled out of the parking lot and made the short drive. They went inside together and sat down at a table, ready to talk.
"You're a smart man. I assume you know why I wanted to sit you down again," Wyatt began.
"Well, there are a few possibilities," Leonard said. "Option one, you want to talk to me about marrying your daughter and how to stand right by her. Option two, you want to talk to me about getting your daughter pregnant and how to stand right by our children. Option three, any combination thereof."
"You think too much, son, you know that?" Wyatt said after a moment, quieting Leonard. "In my mind, I have no worries about you marrying Penny. You're a respectable man. I trust you with her."
"Thank you, sir. That means a lot to me," Leonard said, sighing with relief.
"Now the second matter. Getting her pregnant," Wyatt said. "Don't let me put words in your mouth, but I assume it's safe to say that no one involved would prefer that this happen so soon, am I right?"
"I…would have preferred it happened maybe a few years down the line, but I'm not at all upset by it," Leonard replied.
"We're not upset by it, either. Just a little worried," Wyatt told him. "I love Penny more than life, but I never saw her with children. She was always out partying and I don't know what all. She never showed any desire to settle down with a family. To be honest, I was a little surprised she got engaged."
"So what's your worry?" Leonard asked.
"Our worry is that Penny is not ready to be a mother, especially to twins," Wyatt said. "Penny…She's a wild one, always has been. Always out looking for the next adventure. But when you have kids, you can't be looking for adventure anymore. Mary had our first child, Penny's brother Carter, when she was seventeen. She was just like Penny, always out causing mischief. Her entire world changed in nine short months, and it wasn't easy on her."
"So what did you do for her?" Leonard wondered.
"I just had to keep reminding her that it would all be worth it in the end. She didn't believe me at first, but when Carter was born and she held that boy for the first time, she completely changed her tune. She would have taken a bullet for him after only knowing him for five minutes."
"Do you think that will happen with Penny?"
"I do. At least, I hope," Wyatt said. "Just be careful afterwards, okay? Mary and I both said no more after Carter. But then we had Penny, and then we had Katie Anne. Now, of course, I love all of my children, but it would have been a lot less stressful if we had been more responsible, and I say the same to you, especially since you're having two the first time around."
"We've always been very careful. Penny's always been on birth control and all that."
"Birth control fails. Condoms break. I'm not going to waste my breath preaching abstinence, so I'm just going to say, be careful."
"We will," Leonard promised.
"I know you will," Wyatt said. "As for you, I'm not really worried about you."
"You're not?"
"No. You've got a good job. You make a good living. You're intelligent and responsible. You know how to keep Penny in line, something I have never been able to master. You'll provide well for my grandbabies. I know you will."
"Thank you, Wyatt. I can't tell you how much it means to me to have your approval. I promise I won't let Penny or your grandchildren down," Leonard said.
"I'm trusting you, Leonard. Now enough business. Tell me what's going on with you."
Leonard and Wyatt spent the rest of their lunch having a casual conversation. It was the first time Leonard had felt completely comfortable with his father-in-law. Knowing that he had so much confidence in him made him even more excited to marry Penny the next day.